Tag Archive for: digital marketing

Personalized URL (PURL): Grab Your Customers’ Attention 

We spend more time in the digital space than we do face-to-face. Because of this, personalization seems to be the best way to put a human touch back into commerce. Personalizing everything from direct mail to e-mail campaigns helps show a brand’s consumers that they care about the human being behind the transaction. One way you can add a personal touch to digital advertising is by utilizing a personalized URL (PURL). The pros at Pel Hughes have been utilizing PURLs for organizations and businesses for quite some time. 

What is a personalized URL (PURL), exactly?

A personalized URL generates a unique landing page for a potential customer. When you send out an e-mail campaign, you embed a link into its text that routes a user to a static web page. An example of a PURL is www.JaneDoe.CompanyName.com. You can also place a simple personalized link to the copy of your direct mail. 

When a PURL is generated, the landing page can be customized with specific discounts and other purchasing offers such as buy-one-get-one-free promotions. Your potential customer will see their name along with familiar images like your logo on their personalized page. 

How can a PURL be used?

There’s a multitude of ways that you could implement a personalized URL. First, a PURL could generate sales by offering a QR code or link to specific products that consumer may be interested in. It could also be used to welcome a new member to an organization or educational institution. For example, Pel Hughes developed PURLs for Tulane University, which were printed onto pieces of direct mail. These PURLs were used to provide resources to prospective students. Another way a PURL can benefit your enterprise is when you deploy an e-mail or direct mail campaign for previous customers who haven’t made a purchase in a while. Something as simple as “We’ve missed you, Jane Doe. Visit your personalized link to earn 15% off your next purchase.” 

The possibilities of PURLs are endless; organizations and businesses throughout the United States have found very clever ways to use them. 

Does personalization really matter?

In the post-modern, Digital Age, personalization absolutely matters. In fact, researchers have found that personalized direct mail, for example, offers an ROI that is leaps and bounds more effective than conventional direct mail that isn’t addressed to a specific resident. Personalizing your marketing materials to customers shows care and attention to detail, which is something that almost anyone can appreciate. 

Another reason that personalization resonates with modern humans is the fact that our lives involve daily inundation from media, cell phone notifications, and our work lives encroaching on our personal lives. Because of this reality, our brains have become very adept at filtering out irrelevant information. One way that advertisers can break through this psychological defense is to personalize their campaigns to consumers. So, seeing your full legal name on a piece of direct mail sends a message of “hey there. This is meant for you, the individual.”

The experts at Pel Hughes are here to help you develop great print materials. We can also help you merge digital advertising with print. From campaign automation and database management to stellar signage and direct mail, we have you covered. Give our friendly team a call at (504) 486-8646 to get started. 

How an Online Management System Can Make Marketing Easier 

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Marketing is the lifeblood for many businesses. The problem, however, is that managing marketing and advertising campaigns takes serious effort and time. Fortunately, technology has made producing marketing and advertising materials much easier with digital management systems. Our team at Pel Hughes offers Storefront—a management system that can increase efficiency and reduce your costs when it comes to handling your marketing campaigns.  

Following are four ways that Storefront can help your business.  

#1 A Convenient Hub for All Your Print Materials 

You can liken Storefront to a digital library. This system can store all your campaigns and other materials like tags and logos in one central location. Let’s say you need to update a franchise restaurant menu or edit existing materials like personalized business cards; you can do so with just a few clicks. Then, you can send these materials to the printer with ease.  

Beyond saving you time and money, Storefront can also set permissions for your account’s users. This is especially beneficial to enterprises with multiple locations or franchises. You can also enable customization for your users. This can be advantageous if you offer different services or prices from different locations. 

#2 Monitor Your Marketing Inventory & Order On-Demand 

Storefront allows for easy reporting. This is helpful for evaluating your marketing budgets or determining which materials are ordered most frequently. Automated reporting helps decision makers understand which materials are most effective and most used. It can also help ensure that your business stays within budget. 

Ordering on-demand also reduces wait times when collaborating with printing companies, marketing agencies, and freelancers. Having your materials in one convenient, secure location accelerates the deployment of your marketing and advertising campaigns.  

#3 Protect Your Brand’s Identity 

Sometimes, businesses with multiple locations and franchises can see inconsistent branding when local managers are left to their own devices. Maintaining a cohesive brand image is crucial to any enterprise’s marketing and advertising efforts. 

 Inconsistent brand messaging can produce a series of hiccups and unintended complications. With Storefront, company leaders can ensure that only approved materials are utilized. Since each user’s permissions are set by their superiors, you can eliminate the threat of inconsistent, unapproved campaigns. Decision makers can also add approval settings to each user’s profile, which adds additional protection in maintaining a cohesive brand identity.  

#4 Easy Payment Methods 

Storefront makes paying for and billing your marketing materials much easier. The interface accepts payments from PayPal and major credit/debit cards. It also allows for invoicing and purchase orders for businesses with multiple locations and franchises.  

Storefront takes a lot of the hassle out of maintaining and ordering advertising and marketing materials. With Storefront, you can protect the brand you worked so hard to develop while increasing your efficiency and reducing your marketing costs.  

If you’re interested in utilizing an online management system, we encourage you to give our helpful team at Pel Hughes a call. Pel Hughes is a woman-owned enterprise that serves businesses of all sizes in both private and non-profit sectors. We offer in-house printing and fulfillment as well as graphic design services. Visit our website or call us at (504) 486-8646 to learn more.